[originaltext] The continent of Antarctica is surrounded by sea ice. (1) The

The continent of Antarctica is surrounded by sea ice. (1) The amount of ice grows in winter and shrinks in summer. The total area it covers changes from year to year. And it just set a new record in January, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports. That month, Antarctic sea ice shrunk to the lowest monthly extent ever recorded.
    The cause of the record-low ice—and whether future years will similarly buck the growing trend—is unclear, James Pope said in a statement. He is a climate scientist with the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge, England. (2) "It is difficult to identify what is causing the record minimum and whether anything significant has changed so close to the record-setting event," he said. Researchers may not understand for years what caused the decline in sea ice. "We will now study the data with interest and look at what is causing this minimum," he said.
    Meanwhile, in the Northern hemisphere, where it is winter, Arctic sea ice is growing. But sea ice there set another record. It had its smallest January extent on record. That edges out the previous record—set just last year.
Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.
1. What do we learn about Antarctic sea ice?
2. What does James Pope say about the cause of the record-low ice?